Brave Command Dagwon
Cover of the series' first DVD Box, depicting En Daidouji and Fire Dagwon
勇者指令ダグオン (Yūsha Shirei Daguon)
Genre	Mecha, Action
Anime television series
Directed by	Tomomi Mochizuki
Produced by	Hitoshi Kako Koji Takamori Mami Ohara Youichi Honna Takayuki Yoshii
Written by	Kenichi Araki
Music by	Edison
Studio	Sunrise
Original network	ANN (Nagoya TV)
Original run	February 3, 1996 – January 25, 1997
Episodes	48
Original video animation
Brave Command Dagwon: The Boy with the Crystal Eyes
Directed by	Tomomi Mochizuki
Produced by	Hiroyuki Birukawa Koji Takamori
Written by	Hiroaki Kitajima
Music by	Tatsumi Yano
Studio	Sunrise
Released	October 22, 1997 – December 28, 1997
Episodes	2

Brave Command Dagwon (Japanese: 勇者指令ダグオン, Hepburn: Yūsha Shirei Daguon) is a Japanese anime series begun in 1996, created by Takara and Sunrise under the direction of Tomomi Mochizuki (who also wrote episodes for the show under the penname Go Sakamoto) and was the seventh and penultimate entry in the Brave (Yūsha) franchise.

Earth is the target of the former Sargasso prisoners who seize control of Sargasso and attack our planet - to counter this, alien officer Brave Alien selects five (and then later seven as the series progresses) teenage boys from Earth to receive the wrist-worn DagCommanders that transform them into the series' title team, the human equivalent to "brave" warriors.

Drawing inspiration from anime franchises which feature transforming heroes as well as anime stock footage hero transformation sequences like live-action tokusatsu franchises (e.g. Super Sentai and its Western counterpart Power Rangers), the selected teenage protagonists transform into special DagTector (ダグテクター, DaguTekutā) battle suits, by activating their DagCommanders' transformation function with the transformation call "Try Dagwon", which grant them pseudo-elemental powers and attacks as well as protection, weapons, tools and amplified physical power. If that is not enough, they have personal basic mecha at their disposal which can turn into humanoid forms as a part of Fusion Combination (融合合体, Yūgō Gattai), a process that sees a character (hero, villain, or otherwise) merge with their mecha not in the sense of a physical merger but in a style where the character transforms their body into anti-matter, like they became an illusion or ghost, and becomes an embodiment for their mecha's humanoid transformation, the mecha serving also as a way of assuming a mecha form. If even greater power is needed, the heroes can merge with additional support units (or perhaps each other) to strengthen their Fusion Combination transformations by forming a physical mecha combination.

In addition to the title protagonists, other friendly beings soon arrive on Earth to aid their efforts of fighting Sargasso - for example: Gunkid, whose own transformations include a tank, jet or the hand-held Infinity Cannon (無限砲, Mugen Hō), was initially on Sargasso's side before he decides to support the Dagwon team, and Lian, a robot that transforms into a sword who later becomes Gunkid's teacher.

The protagonists also have DagBase (ダグベース, DaguBēsu), a base which En, one of the Dagwon team's members, uses one ability of: Super Fusion Combination (超融合合体, Chō Yūgō Gattai), a form of Fusion Combination which is slightly stronger than the basic kind as a user assimilates DagBase, transforming themselves and DagBase into DagBase Robo (ダグベースロボ, DaguBēsu Robo).

Composition

This series consists of 48 episodes, first aired on Nagoya TV from February 3, 1996, to January 25 next year. Its success, despite children being put off by its male bishōnen superhero theme and instead finding an audience in women who are fond of male bishōnen main characters (especially male bishōnen protagonists and male bishōnen superheroes), warrants the two-episode O.V.A. The Boy with Crystal Eyes (水晶の瞳の少年, Suishō no Hitomi no Shōnen), which came out in September 1997. The show is currently not licensed in the US as is the status with all the other entries in the Brave franchise, except the franchises' last incarnation to span an anime presentation:The King of Braves GaoGaiGar.

Team

Allies

Major antagonists

Arch Alien

The first major villain in the series. He is responsible for exterminating the Sword Aliens a long time ago. He wears black knight-like armour and is revealed to look human underneath his armour when he is defeated by Lian.

Warugaia Seijin Brothers

• Hido

Voiced by Masahito Yabe

First-appearing in his human disguise, crashing into Luna's ship as she is leaving earth, kidnapping and then brainwashing her into doing his bidding. He tries to have her kill Kai who is able to break the brainwashing. He is killed by Brave Seijin.

• Gedo

Voiced by Takashi Nagasako

The muscle of the brothers. Killed by Power Dagwon & Lian

• Mado

Voiced by Koji Ishii

The leader of the three. Killed by Super Fire Dagwon with Lian and Gunkid

Genocide

Voiced by Ryuzaburo Otomo

He is responsible for the Sargasso prison break. His power is machine and organism possession. He manipulates the prisoners throughout the entire series when his asteroid-like body crashes into Sargosso and takes over the prison's computer system. He was thought to be killed when Sargasso was split in half by DagBase. He survives and possesses Fire Jumbo (also transforming into the body of Fire Dagwon), creating a barrier of hatred that consumes the Earth. Finally killed when En forces a combination into Super Fire Dagwon and self-destructs in space.

Minor antagonists

• Sandoll Alien: Appears in episode 1. Powers include a capsule form for space travel, palm sand missiles, reformation after body part or entire body destruction and a two-or-more-Sandoll combination to form a slightly stronger Sandoll kind. Upon combination with each other they acquire the ability to shoot concentrated sand from the torso.
• Zargoss Alien: There are several antagonists who spin off of or are in some way related to this Alien that appear in episodes 2, 8, 16 & 31 or exclusively in either some or at least a minimum of one of these 4 episodes:
  • Zargoss Soldier: Powers include super speeds, explosive saliva, invisibility, eye lasers and human disguise transformation capabilities. Reappear in Brave Saga.
  • Zargoss Robo: Powers include levitation, invisibility, underside energy bolts, eye, torso, and pelvis energy beams, and torso lasers.
  • Mognel: Appears only in episode 8. Powers include burrowing, hypnotic snoring that becomes more powerful over time, a rubbery body with a high resistance to cold, and a powerful tail. Reappears in Brave Saga.
  • Sister Zargoss: Appear only in episode 31. Powers include flight, acid streams from the mouth, and super speed. They are the elites of the Zargoss Seijin.
  • Queen Zargoss: Appears only in episode 31. Powers include eye energy bolts, an energy field, and mouth energy bolts that convert objects into stone. She is the leader and possible mother of the Zargoss Seijin.
• Gallon Alien: Appears in episode 3 with an 18-episodes-later reappearance. Powers include a life-draining slime body, emitting electricity, body spears, and a high resistance to heat.
• Death Pulse Alien: Appears in episode 4. Powers include levitation, circular saw top probes, and an electrical force field. This Alien has a 'Robo' relation that appears one episode before episode 4, the 4th episode being the appearance of this Alien after the Robo's first appearance:
  • Death Pulse Robo: Appears in episodes 3 and 4. Powers include flight, swimming, an underside drill, fast spinning, and four flamethrowers on the top of the body.
• Electron Alien: Appears in episode 5. Powers include planetary travel in an orb of light, emitting electrical bolts and balls, body conversion into electricity, electricity-absorption-powered size increase, an electric force field and electric-blade-spawning from the hands.
• Chaos Alien: Appears in episode 6. Powers include flight, possessing objects and reinforcing their structure, and reformation.
• Guardroid: Appears in episode 7. They are the former jailer robots of Sargasso before a cosmic storm hits the prison and accidentally releases the prisoners - they are then made assistants of the antagonists. They are armed with an assault rifle.
• Gososa: Appears in episode 7. Powers include flight, Guardroid storage, a black hole cell, a pair of punching arms armed with palm lasers, and a 16-tube rocket pod.
  • Space Locust: Appear in episode 11. Powers include sharp teeth and flight. They serve as the personal minions of Arch Alien.
• Gallabird Alien: Appears in episodes 9 and 21. Powers include flight at mach 8, hurricane winds from the wings, a grapple tentacle in the forehead, and acid streams from the mouth. Reappears in Brave Saga.
• Zamuza: Appear in episode 9. Powers include growth by eating, wall crawling, and mouth webs. Reappears in Brave Saga.
• Killad Alien: Appears in episode 10. Powers include absorbing defeated enemies using a forehead laser to absorb their powers and teleportation.
  • Evolved Killad: Assumed in episode 10 with a reappearance 11 episodes later. Powers include gorilla-style strength, tiger-style agility and fangs, a tank cannon on the left shoulder, a pair of missile launchers on the right shoulder, jet-powered flight, and projectile resistance. After absorbing a destroyer class warship his new body weapons consist of machine gun turrets, a missile pod and a triple-barreled howitzer cannon while his body gains a resistance to blades.
• Armor Alien: Appears in episodes 12 and 21. Powers include a ball form capable of planetary travel, burrowing and self-defense against most objects, iron consumption, thick head armor and launchable needles from the mouth. After eating enough iron it can grow launchable spikes in its ball form.
• Wildy Alien: Appears in episode 13. Powers include a heat reflective sword, high jumping, and can cause illusions from his single eye.
  • Wildon: Appears in episode 13. Powers include flight and mouth flames. It serves as the mount for Wildy.
• Rod Alien: Appears in episode 14. Powers include flight and an electric whip for each arm.
  • Griffin: Appears in episode 14. Powers include flight, mouth energy bolts that rival napalm, mouth sonic waves, armored wings, growth over time, a high resistance to heat, and lasers from the forehead emerald.
• Succubus: Appears in episodes 15 and 21. Powers include human disguises, hypnotic eyes, extendable tentacle fingers, teleportation, electric capture rings from her staff, size changing, and mouth flames.
• Phoenix Alien: Appears in episodes 17 and 21. Powers include a high body temperature, levitation, mouth flames, an egg-like regenerative core with telekinetic properties and black electric bolts, and fire absorption. Reappears in Brave Saga.
• Vander Alien: Appears in episode 18. Powers include hypnotizing children and entrapping them in spheres of light, floating on top of water, tentacles in his stomach, and flight. Reappears in Brave Saga.
• Drangran Alien and Drangran Spider: Appear in episode 19.
  • Drangran Alien's powers include extendable tentacle limbs, painful screams, and when wearing their bio-suits are armed with right wrist lasers.
  • Drangran Spider's only known power is emitting webs from its mouth.
  • Space Seed Plant: Appears in episode 19. Powers include destructive vines and acidic spores upon blooming.
• Nouvelle Alien: Appear in episodes 20 and 21. Powers include a barrel-less laser pistol and flying saucers armed with jade converting energy bolts and spike missiles.
• Hydron Alien: Appears in episode 21. Powers include levitation, teleportation, reviving the dead, a bone scythe, summoning wormholes, holograms, and combining with revived spirits to form a skull-like tank.
• Demos: Appears in episode 22. Powers include flight, teleportation, emitting lightning bolts from his hands, a sword made of electricity, and size changing.
• Mekaju Alien: Appears in episodes 23 and 24. Powers include draining the life out of surrounding plant life, a grid energy barrier, reformation, and solar radiation absorption to power the Infinity Cannon. He is the former owner of Gunkid.
• Cameron Alien: Appears in episode 25. Powers include flight, shape-shifting and body bombs.
• Demaka Alien: Appears in episode 26. Powers include merging into the environment, levitation, projecting images with his eye-like body, and turning into a cockroach.
• Mouser Alien: Appear in episode 27. Powers include reproduction by mitosis by consuming nutrients and super speed.
  • Mouser Robo: Appears in episode 27. Powers include flight, a mouth tractor beam, four energy cannons on the nose, energy beams from its launchable wired arms, gun turrets around the body, armor thick enough to withstand the Infinity Cannon, stunning energy bolts from the arms, and can release a drill from said arms.
• Gumopider Alien: Appears in episode 28. Powers include levitation, forehead and palm webs, solidifying clouds, wings that can control web movements, and eye lasers.
• Radonpa Alien: Appears in episode 29. He possesses no known powers.
• Death Cop: Appears in episode 32. Powers and tools include a slicing whip from the right wrist, a laser pistol, and Fusion Combination with his ship. He is a former Dagwon officer who turns to crime. Death Cop faces En in a fierce battle over the course of his appearance.
  • Death Cop Powered: The Fusion Combination of Death Cop and his ship into a mecha body form assumed during his battle with En. Powers include a three-barreled machine gun in the left wrist, high jumping, a slicing electric whip in the right wrist, an energy saber stored in the left hip, and a powerful energy cannon called the Death Buster that is similar to the Infinity Cannon.
• Futtoba Alien: Appears in episode 33. Powers include levitation, weather manipulation, and hiding in a cumulonimbus cloud.
• Pat Alien: Appear in episode 34. Their only known power is having a metallic armored body.
  • Heavy Machine Robo: Appear in episode 34. Powers include flight, four grapple claw arms, and storing metal in their canister-like body.
  • Patrol Machine Robo: Appears in episode 34. Its only known power is a pair of claws for arms.
• Savalas Alien: Appears in episode 35. Powers include a flying orb that can manipulate water and has a high resistance to cold, swimming, and sharp claws.
• Pulse Alien: Appears in episode 36. Powers include converting his body into electricity and eye beams.
• Trucker Alien: Appears in episode 37. Powers include a turbine in its back used for speed and morphing into different types of trucks. Upon fully evolving he is armed with a pair of missile pods, a pair of machine guns on h its face, a cannon on its "scalp", and remote tires armed with a pair of spikes.
• Ashura Shura: Appears in episode 38. Powers include a human disguise, telepathy, six spider legs from the back, and extendable arms.
• Zelma Alien: Appears in episode 41. Powers include flight, weather manipulation, tentacles that emit black energy bolts, a force field capable of emitting energy beams strong enough to obliterate mountains in one hit, and energy shockwaves and hurricane-force winds from below the head section.
• Bomber Alien: Appears in episode 43. Powers include flight, spawning explosions around him, and a nuclear bomb within his body.
• Battle Robo: Appear in episode 44. Powers include flight and a beam machine gun.

Episodes

External links

• 勇者指令ダグオン (Japanese) - Sunrise's Brave website's official Brave Command Dagwon index
• Brave Command Dagwon (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia
• 勇者指令ダグオン 水晶の瞳の少年 OVA (Japanese) - official Brave website page for the OVA
• Brave Command Dagwon (anime) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia